October 20, 2011

I jump on my soapbox at the start of the season bellowing for Rob Bolden to start at quarterback, only to see the sophomore's game trickle down to backup caliber, at best.

Yet Penn State sits at 6-1 with Bolden starting every single game.

I call out the players, saying this team "simply isn't that good" and predict a home loss against Iowa, only to see the Penn State defense hold James Vandenberg and the Hawkeyes to three points in the 13-3 win.

But remember, that was a week after the Lions had nearly lost on a trip to Bloomington, Ind.

Yet Penn State is 6-1.

The point is that you don't know which Penn State team is going to show up on a given week. The only two things we can count on heading into Week 8 is that the defense will keep the Nittany Lions in the game and Joe Paterno will spend at least half - if not all - of the game watching from the press box.

The offense has been a circus this season, especially with the quarterback situation, injuries and sideline and clock management issues. Going into Saturday's matchup with Northwestern, Penn State ranks 80th among the nation's FBS schools in passing yards per game, 96th in points scored, and 52nd in rushing yards per game.

Yet Penn State is 6-1.

One thing that's killed the team is fumbles, especially in the red zone. Through the last six weeks, Penn State has fumbled 15 times, killing drives left and right. Combine that with the Lions' general inability to punch the ball into the end zone in the first place, and that will lead to a low-scoring, lackluster offense.

JoePa doesn't see a problem here.

"How many times has the other guys fumbled?" he asked back to the media on Tuesday. "Saturday they (Purdue) fumbled three times.

"I mean, we have fumbled at tough spots. No, I'm not concerned about it. I think we're doing all right there."

And Penn State somehow is 6-1.

That's what I don't understand. Blatant holes in the team are being ignored by the coach. Yet this team is 6-1.

It's obvious that Matt McGloin is the best quarterback this team has and he should be running this offense full time. I'm not afraid to admit I was wrong on this issue. But the man at the helm isn't as quick to admit he's wrong as I.

"Since we have had Bolden starting with McGloin coming in, we've been able to do a decent job," Paterno said. "I just have been reluctant to change that. You change it, you don't know what you're going to get. McGloin does a good job coming in off the bench. He's a guy that observes things.

"I think the thing has worked out all right. Obviously, we've all talked several times. I'm sure they'd (the coaching staff) like me to pick one or the other. I think right now I couldn't do that. So we're going to stay pretty much the same way."

I could sit and go on and on about why I think this move is terrible, why I feel Paterno is out of touch with his team (and the state of college football today) or why this entire coaching staff needs to find new employment at the end of the season, but it would all be thrown right back in my face, along with Penn State's 6-1 record.

Tossing out the embarrassing loss to Alabama where the entire team was outplayed and overmatched, the Nittany Lion defense, ranking sixth in the nation in points allowed per game, has held Penn State together and led it to a 3-0 conference record.

So instead of jumping on my soapbox this week, I'm going to sit back and enjoy the fact that Penn State is ranked 21st in the BCS standings and sits two games ahead of Ohio State in the Big Ten Leaders Division. The Lions are bowl eligible for the seventh straight season.

Oh, yeah, and Penn State is 6-1.

Quote of the week: "Well, if you could come up with one. I'll be willing to put a patent on it." - Joe Paterno, when asked if anything could be done to protect coaches from sideline injuries.